In chess, the f7 (f2) square is well known as the “Achilles Heel” of the position. The name has been given from the fact that this is the weakest point in each player’s camp. If you take a look at every initial pawn square, you will notice that this one is the only one that’s protected once and the protecting piece is not even a strong one, but the king!

Continuing our series of typical sacrifices in the middlegame, we are going to present you in this article the double bishop sacrifice. It starts out as a classical bishop sacrifice on h7 (h2), but giving up the other bishop too on g7 (g2) can prove devastating for the king’s security.

Today we are going to discuss a theme that can occur relatively frequently during the games of any chessplayer. Commonly known as the classical bishop sacrifice, or the Greek gift sacrifice, it can turn out to be a lethal weapon. No matter how easy it might look, this tactical idea still needs a decent degree of accuracy.

In chess, the positional struggle is based on the accumulation of small advantages. There are several elements that a chess player must takes into consideration in order to unbalance the game in his favor. These elements are well known: pawn structure, bishop pair, weak squares, piece coordination, king safety, just to name a few of the most commonly used factors.

Opposite flank attacks is a common element in chess. In the most popular openings like Sicilian – Najdorf, Classical or the Dragon, it is very often that white chooses to castle queenside in order to launch an attack against the black king located on the opposite flank.

A very common element in chess is the concept of SPACE. Very often we hear masters talking about the importance of space in today’s chess. Along with the concept of the bishop pair, the concept of space advantage has become one of the most important factors when it comes to evaluate positions and make decisions in the opening and middlegame.

In the first part of this article, we have presented a few elements that should ring an alarm and help you realize that it might be time to launch an attack against your opponent. In general, the ideas we mentioned can be applied in other circumstances as well, not only when our opponent’s king is in the center. You can also consider them when attacking the castle, for example.

The king in the center is always a questionable factor during a chess game. It always raises the doubt whether it’s safe or not. Sometimes bravery can be easily confused with imprudence and a player can find himself under an unstoppable attack against his king. The basic principles of the opening, in 90% of the cases, should not be broken.

Chess is a very complex game. It is based on certain rules, or principles if you wish, that can significantly simplify your job as a chess player. Today we will cover five things that you should avoid in your games to stay out of trouble. Each of these things was time tested and if applied correctly will save your many games and rating points. Here there are.

We have previously covered some of the most important defensive principles of chess. Today we will talk about the most exciting topic – the attack. Keep in mind that attack is the best form of defense. In order to attack well you need to be familiar with these seven very important attacking principles (they will help you to win many games).